Gophers’ Morgan, Ibrahim named to Maxwell Award Watch List
Mo Ibrahim had 26 carries for 151 yards in Minnesota's 20-17 overtime loss at Wisconsin on Saturday. ((credit: University of Minnesota Athletics))
MINNEAPOLIS - The University of Minnesota football team is a few weeks away from starting fall camp, but at least two players are already receiving preseason accolades.
Quarterback Tanner Morgan and running back Mohamed Ibrahim on Monday were named to the Maxwell Award Watch List. The honor goes annually to the outstanding player in college football, and 80 players made the preseason list. The Gophers are one of 14 schools to have multiple players on the list.
Ibrahim enters the 2021 season after being named the Big Ten Running Back of the Year in 2020. Ibrahim led the Big Ten in rushing (1,076 yards) and rushing touchdowns (15) and all-purpose yards (168.4). He set a school record, averaging 153.7 rushing yards per game, and tied a school record with four rushing touchdowns each at Maryland and at Illinois.
Ibrahim is ninth in program history with 2,840 rushing yards in 28 games. He’s tied for sixth in school history with 31 rushing touchdowns, and is eighth in program history averaging nearly 5.5 yards per carry. Ibrahim also has eight straight 100-yard rushing games, the best in program history.
Morgan enters the 2021 season 18-8 in two seasons as a starting quarterback. His 6,082 passing yards is sixth in school history, and he leads the program completing 62 percent of his passes all-time. He has 46 career touchdown passes, which is fourth in program history.
Morgan has 11 all-time and single-game Gophers’ records, and was named a Second Team All-Big Ten pick after leading the Gophers to an 11-2 season in 2019.
The Gophers open the 2021 season on Thursday, Sept. 2, against Ohio State University at Huntington Bank Stadium in a game you can see on Fox 9.